Saturday, August 25, 2012

Food Fishing

That's a fish. 41-inch Rockfish on a stretch plug. The gear consisted of 250 feet of 100-pound mono, a 2-ounce in-line torpedo sinker, and a Cuban Yo-yo.

You do NOT handle the line with you fingers. It's more like winding in a kite, with a figure 8 motion.

We trolled a hose eel on a yo-yo at 6-7 knots from Point No Point to Smith Point under sail and were rewarded with a pair of snapper blues. A home-made lure, tied from a bit of surgical hose, mono, an S-hook and a stainless fishhook; the purchased hose eel on the other transom caught nothing. We scaped (yes, that is the correct local spelling) crabs from dock pilings in Tangier for an hour and collected a bucket full.

Seafood feast at Tangier Island

Introducing whole crabs to a newby is always a treat. The fresh taste rewarding persistence and thoughtful exploration of the carcass.

For sand sharks we have great success with grass shrimp, mostly because we can always get them off the pilings with a net and thus fish with them a lot. Sea bass like them too. A bass rod is about right.

Shark fishing, Cape May. Particularly good with onions and Old Bay. No bones.

Shoal Survivor (PDQ 32/34) is For Sale

PDQ yachts are known for superior quality, durability, and ability in heavy going. Quality resins, synthetic cores, vacuum-bagged construction, and strategic use of carbon fiber insure both light weight and freedom from delamination and blistering. Systems are well thought out, designed for easy maintenance, and carefully installed. Unlike the "price point” the boats they often compete with, these were built with years of bulletproof, reliable service in mind; if quality is important to you, this PDQ will make you happy.

Keeping a Cruising Boat for Peanuts--Available in PDF!

As much as I love sailing, putting my daughter through college and funding my 401K are more important. Transitioning from professional engineer to writer has transformed my habit of living efficiently into a passion for spreading funds thin. I like to think of it as a challenge for the imagination—it’s more fun that way.

I’ve written over 100 equipment reviews and engineering articles for popular sailing magazines, all based on laboratory and hands-on testing. I’ve spent 30 years learning how to maintain, fix, and upgrade. I've also spent 35 years as a chemical engineer, and my wife thinks I live in my basement shop.

As a result I’ve become a fair hand most crafts, never get stuck in the field with something I can’t fix, and I've learned to spread money thin, without compromising speed, reliability, or performance. Although I've written on many topics, my wife assures me this is the one I know best. My magnum opus?

About Me

This is my place to share my enthusiasm for the Chesapeake Bay, Delmarva Peninsula, PDQ specific minutia, and sailing in general. As a regular contributor to sailing magazines including Practical Sailor and Good Old Boat (over 100 articles), it provides a place to try out ideas and publish the overflow. Here I can blurt it out half formed ideas, collect comments, and to see what questions my inquiry suggests. If I need to get long winded or philosophical, it’s my space to do so.
After 10 years of kayaking, 25 years of sailing, 30 years of rock and ice climbing, and 35 years as a chemical engineer, I still have much to learn and my life is still one giant science project. My end of the pier is always festooned with test rigs and warning signs. Every research project brings surprises—things I didn’t know, and just as often, things no one knew. And so through books and articles, I share.